


The Making of Banana Fish (Interviews Only)

by Anonymous_Cupcake



Category: Banana Fish (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Banana Fish was just a show everything is fine, Donovan (Dino) is actually nice because acting, Everyone is just having fun and being themselves, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Happy times all around, M/M, Self-Indulgent
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-17
Updated: 2020-06-17
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:15:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,572
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24765277
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anonymous_Cupcake/pseuds/Anonymous_Cupcake
Summary: A compilation of interviews from the cast of Banana Fish as they describe some of their experiences.(The self indulgent fic we deserve)
Relationships: Ash Lynx & Shorter Wong, Ash Lynx/Okumura Eiji, Lee Yut-Lung & Okumura Eiji, Michael & Skipper (Banana Fish), Okumura Eiji & Shorter Wong
Comments: 24
Kudos: 261





	The Making of Banana Fish (Interviews Only)

**Author's Note:**

> More self indulgent fics because it's easier to imagine this is canon instead

_ *Note: this is a compilation of multiple interviews from the cast of Banana Fish. Most of the cast was interviewed separately. _

**I only ask because we all laughed at the similarities, can you please say your name and the name of your character?**

Eiji: My name is Nakamura Eiji and I…  **[He sighs]** I played Okumura Eiji.

-

Ash: I'm Ash Winston and I played Aslan Jade Callenreese, also known as Ash Lynx.

-

Arthur: Arthur Newt, and I was Frederick Arthur.

-

Donovan: My name is Donovan and I was Dino Golzine.  **[He groans]** I hated every minute of it.

-

**You're quite popular in Japan so how did it feel to have a part in a Western show?**

Eiji: When I heard Miss Yoshida wanted  _ me _ to play one of the main characters I was terrified. I was already thinking about how badly I could screw it up. A lot of people were really happy for me and I did end up having a lot of fun.

**Did you know any of the cast beforehand?**

Eiji: I worked with Yue and Ibe a couple of times but I didn't know the rest. If your next question is "was it scary having to work Americans?" then the answer is yes, it was very scary. 

-

**This is your first major role, correct?**

Ash: Yes it is.  **[He smiles]** If it wasn't for this I probably wouldn't have been able to meet some great people.

**Do you mean Nakamura?**

Ash: … Am I that obvious?

-

**Do you believe the scar is what allowed you to get the role?**

Arthur: Well, I'd like to think I'm a great actor.  **[He burst into laughter]** Seriously though, I think the scar was an afterthought.  **[He holds up his hand to show off the scar on his middle finger]** This was from an ex, he was  _ not _ happy with me. I remember getting the part and they told me "Is it alright if we add more? Yoshida got an idea and we want to see how it'll work" and I said "Go ahead. Do whatever the [expletive] you want"... am I allowed to swear?

-

**Before you said you hated your role, can you add on to that?**

Donovan: Personally I think they just looked at my face and went "That's the face of a pedophile" which one, upset me, and two, upset me again because damn I do look like one. I have a wife, I have kids, to have to act like that hurt me a lot more than it hurt the cast. It scared me how easy it was for them to get into character, especially Ash.

**What's your opinion on Dino?**

Donovan: He's smart, cunning, and you can respect him as a villain but not as a human being. I've never been so happy to have my character be killed off.

-

**How did you feel knowing you were going to be working with Nakamura again?**

Yue: It was nice to see a familiar face. At least until I realized most of the scenes we were in required us to hate each other.

**Did you find that hard to do?**

Yue: That's the best part about acting. Everyone knows it's a show and we can understand that whatever we said was said because it's part of the script. Plus, it helped make the betrayal more real.

-

**What was it like working with the children who played Skipper and Michael?**

Eiji: They're both amazing and incredibly talented. They're so young and are able to do so much and getting to see them goof around and have fun helped ease the tension when we filmed the first episode.

-

Ash: I don't know where they found those kids but they did a fantastic job. Seriously, they kept yelling encouragements after fight scenes and they never seemed to lose their smiles as the day went on. I could've used some of that energy.

-

Max: It was like Michael was born to play that role.

**How well did he know the script?**

Max: He's still innocent, it was made very clear that he only did his part and that was it. Probably for the best, let him have the fun and happy roles before the dark and gritty.

-

**Did you enjoy your role as Griffin?**

Gray: They basically asked me to sit in a chair and act dead to the world… of course I enjoyed it! 

-

**Nakamura, how would you describe your relationship with Ash?**

Eiji: It was sort of similar to Okumura and Aslan's. We didn't know each other that well in the beginning but we got closer and started hanging out more and it showed when we'd record and I realized you could see the little things that let you know this is treading the line of platonic and romantic.

**When the finale aired you posted a pic on your Instagram that you deleted ten minutes later. Why? [The photo in question was of Nakamura and Ash kissing with a caption that said "My soul is always with you", a reference to a line said in the finale]**

Eiji:  **[He turned red]** It felt too personal. Ash said it was ok but I couldn't bring myself to post it again.

**You recently made the relationship official, how did it feel?**

Eiji:  **[He smiles fondly]** Amazing.

-

Ash: Honestly I think episodes 14 to 24 is when we started acting slightly more like a couple. We always knew the characters would end up together but I don't think we expected to actually fall in love with each other.

**Did being together make the final scene more emotional?**

Ash: Actually, you know how people keep talking about me crying and how the scene seemed so raw? We already had footage of the letter Okumura gives Aslan but Eiji wrote his own letter and that was the one I was holding. Seeing his handwriting and his little extra "I love you's" made me realize holy [expletive], he  _ loves  _ me. And that's when the tears started flowing and I just let them.  **[He starts pouting]** Now he makes fun of me for that.

-

**What did you think about Ash's gang?**

Ben: I loved playing Bones! He has this sort of crackhead, feral look to him that I love.

Allison: Show them your teeth.

**[Ben opened his mouth wide to show that he's actually missing a few teeth, but not as much as his character lost]**

Allison: The gang, really Bones and Kong, were like those two guys. They were there just to be like hey, here's the gang, they're still here!

Ben: Even if Bones wasn't in a lot of scenes I still loved it.

-

**You had the role of Ash's best friend, how were you able to do it despite not knowing him for long?**

Shorter: Well it was actually kind of easy. When we met we just sorta… clicked. Almost like fate, we got close and we were able to make it look like we were friends for years. Sometimes it feels like we were.

**Did you know Nakamura and Ash would become a couple?**

Shorter: I always had a feeling. It was obvious to everyone except themselves. Aslan has an 180 IQ, Ash certainly doesn't!

-

**Any embarrassing moments while working on set?**

Eiji:  **[He goes red again]** The first time I had to say his full name I said-  **[He says Ash Lynx out loud but with a slight accent that makes it sound like Ashu Rinks]** Everyone couldn't take it seriously and I blame my face.

**You blame your face?**

Eiji: I have a baby face and that's part of the reason why Miss Yoshida wanted me. That combined with the accent became a recipe for disaster.

-

Shorter: Every time he had to say Ash someone off or onset would say "Bless you" because it sounded like a really soft sneeze and it was adorable. I once said "Ashu" by mistake just because he keeps saying it and no one will let me live it down.

-

Donovan:  **[He's laughing just thinking about it]** During the part where Okumura tries to rescue Aslan he has to point a gun at me. I cannot take him seriously! We redid that scene so many times because I kept losing it. And I wasn't the only one!

-

Yue: The image of Eiji holding a gun while looking so serious has been engraved into my mind.

-

**Favorite scene you did with someone?**

Eiji: "Even if the world turns on you, I'll always be by your side." That line always sticks with me.

-

Yue: Getting to interrupt Blanca's seduction attempt. Or really anytime I get to act like a petty [expletive].

-

Ash: All the scenes were Eiji and I got to act like a couple.

-

Max: When Jenny held an actual shotgun and pretended to shoot me. A part of me forgot it was fake.

-

Skip: Just being able to watch Nakamura jump over the wall! No one told me he was doing his own stunts!

-

**People claim that seeing Nakamura jump was what made you realize you were in love with him. Can you confirm that?**

Ash: For Aslan, yes, I'd say it's possible. In real life I'd say it made me respect him more.

-

**Will you be inviting the cast to the wedding?**

Ash:  **[For the first time during the interview he goes red]** Um, well, oh [expletive] I never thought about how I'd propose…

**You have time.**


End file.
